Residents of the remote Maldives island of Kuda Huvadhoo said they saw a “low-flying plane” around 6.15 a.m. on March 8, the day when the flight disappeared, Xinhua quoted Haveeru as saying.

It also said the residents reported that it was a white aircraft, with red stripes across it like the planes operated by Malaysia Airlines.

Eyewitnesses from the Kuda Huvadhoo concurred that the aeroplane was travelling north to south-east, towards the southern tip of the Maldives -Addu island. They also noted the incredibly loud noise that the flight made when it flew over the island.

Mohamed Zaheem, the Island Councilor of Kuda Huvadhoo, said the residents of the island had spoken about the incident, according to Haveeru.

The Malaysia airlines jet MH370 disappeared March 8 with 239 people on board after taking off from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing. Investigators said it was deliberately diverted off course.

Twenty-six countries are now helping to hunt for the plane after satellite and military radar data projected two huge corridors through which it might have flown.